About Ambien

Discussion forum about the side effects of Ambien. Share your experience and opinion about Ambien. What would you tell your best friend about this product? Please remember that we do not give medical advice. That is for your local health care provider, who is familiar with your medical history.

Didn't remember a thingDate: 1/23/2008I used it in the past and had blackouts before going to sleep. I ate meals and did chores and didn't remember a thing. This could lead to accidents and death. Please be careful if you take this drug. Make sure someone is around you to make sure you don't do anything stupid.
Mary

I was told I had attempted suicideDate: 1/23/2008I was prescribed Ambien when my grandfather passed away and I was in college. I was told by my boyfriend at the time that I would act like I was awake although I had taken Ambien to sleep, and even had conversations that were strange and incoherent like I was awake and even walked around the room and acted on my own accord although I was asleep. I had no recollection of these incidents upon wakening. The culmination of this happened when I was in my dorm room one night. My boyfriend and I had broken up a month prior. I was very sad and couldn't get to sleep, so I took my normal dose of Ambien. The next thing I know I woke up in the hospital. I was told I had attempted suicide, once again with no recollection of the incident. I had painted the windows of my dorm room with acrylic paint (art student) and my mother had called me and I answered and was acting very strange in her words so she called 911. When they arrived I was passed out on the floor and obviously taken an excessive amount of Ambien after my initial dose. I could be dead because of this drug and it's obvious impairment and sleep walking tenancies. This all happened back a few years ago, but I still wonder to this day what happened - Ambien seemed to heighten my depression at the time.
Kelly

Scared me almost to deathDate: 1/23/2008My Husband was prescribed ambien for insomnia. The first time he took it he didn't sleep well. The second time he seemed ok with it and got a decent night's sleep. These doses were a few night's apart. Then the third time he took ambien before bed he was asleep in like ten minutes. That night he scared me almost to death. I was sleeping facing my husband when his motion woke me up. He sat up stiff as a board out of a sound sleep with his eyes open. I thought he was dead. He turned his head and looked at me with his head cocked sideways and said, "Am I playing chess, Can you help me? This was not a normal tone of voice but more like scicotic. Then he layed down fast as he sat up and turned his head to the wall and was out. I tried to reach him, asked if he was awake, and if he was alright, touched him on the shoulder, called his name, and nothing. It was like he wasn't even here. He was in a total other world, one that I could not bring him out of for hours. I didn't dare go back to sleep till I knew he was ok. I was afraid for him and for me. I never seen him like this ever. I found your website in the morning when I looked up sleep talking while on ambien, and was shocked to read all of these stories and others on other websites. I think this drug should be banned and certainly not sold as a sleep aid. It is a hypnotic, not a sleep aid, and doctors do not tell you any of this is possible. I flushed all the ambien as my husband agreed never to take this drug again.
Carly

Awful side effectsDate: 1/23/2008I took Ambien for about 30 days. I had awful side effects. I started having panic attacks, couldn't sit down and many phobias appeared. I could not stand to be in dimly lit rooms, I had to take very fast showers because I couldn't stand water on my face, I couldn't cook because I couldn't go into the refrigerator. One day I started to thing about driving my car into the oncoming traffic to end all the fears. Instead I went home and threw away the pills. It took over 6 months to clear all the problems caused by Ambien.
Sheryl

Good memory is awful nowDate: 1/24/2008I have been taking Ambien for about 5 years now. I have always had a pretty good memory until I started taking ambien. My memory is awful now. I can't even remember friend's names that I've known for 15 years. I know for a fact that I cannot sleep without it, but if I could ever come up with another alternative would my memory ever come back?
Chad

AskDocWeb: Sorry Chad, more research is needed before that question can be answered.

Seven years of AmbienDate: 1/24/2008I have been taking Ambien on and off (mostly on) since my brother was killed in 2001. We are talking seven years now. In that time I have driven my car in a stupor. I got pulled over by the cops because I was speeding. I call Ambien truth serum because no matter what is going on I tell the blunt honest truth. I guess I told the cop that I always speed when going down that road. And I seemed lucid so he didn't think I was under the influence. He did give me a ticket for my blunt rudeness. LOL But I can also tell you that Ambien does the same thing to me as it does to others. I eat myself out of house and home and don't remember anything about it the next day. I usually come up with some strange food concoctions too. Like oatmeal mixed with hot chocolate mix. I have gained a lot of weight on Ambien. But at five foot three and 74 pounds as an anorexic person I needed to. But now I'm up to 122 which is huge to me!! I'm thinking of getting off of it just for that simple reason. Also I get really bold and say things that I was thinking but would never say aloud. So sometimes I get e-mails or phone calls the next day from people who have hurt feelings or whatever and I don't remember it at all. That and being told all the time. You already told me that last night. I get that a lot. So basically what I am saying is that if you are not on Ambien yet....do not get on it. It's not worth it. You can find better safer ways of getting sleep. I guess that's all I have to say.
Taylor

Could not functionDate: 1/24/2008I had used ambien for 1 month every night. I started to get foggy headed, dizzy, weak and could not go to work. I was getting waves of heat through my body. The doctors thought I was having panic attacks. Not my personality. I stopped taking ambien and all symptoms slowly went away in about 2 weeks. Ambien is great to take once in a while but not continuously. I felt like a different person and could not function when I was using it. Be careful!
Rhonda

RememberDate: 1/25/2008It's well to remember that the person who lies quietly in bed, mind and body relaxed, is getting almost the same amount of rest and renewal of energy as though he were spending the time in profound slumber. When the English writer Ruskin said, "Make yourself nests of pleasant thoughts", he touched on the secret of a good nights rest. TRY THIS, and start to gain control of your own life.
Bev

Made crazy phone callsDate: 1/25/2008I took Ambien then went right to bed but made crazy phone calls in the wee hours to people who worried about me since I don't drink. The other time, I awoke the next morning to find the house doors unlocked, my clothing dirty, and bruises on me. I don't have any memory at all of what happened. This kind of incident is very frightening because it could be life threatening. Only took it twice out of desperation over a period of about 8 months. This drug causes complete amnesia, making it extremely dangerous. It should be banned.
Len

My blogDate: 1/25/2008I just did an entire post on my blog about how horrible it is, but I am dependent on it and feel I have no alternative.
Barbara

Completely addictedDate: 1/26/2008I've been taking ambien for about three years now and can't sleep without it, completely addicted to it, if I try to sleep without it, it makes me feel as though I'm on some kind of stimulant. I started with 5 mg and now am taking 10mg. Lately I have been waking up really early but have been able to get back to sleep pretty quickly, main concern is the extreme short term memory loss, but I do feel great sleeping...
Need sleep

Dangerous drugDate: 1/26/2008My husband is 59 years old and has been taking 5mg of Ambien nightly for about 3-4 years. Like others he has had conversations with me after taking it and denies ever having had them with me. He is extremely exhausted during the day. He falls asleep driving long distances (and does this every weekend because he commutes for his job). He does have short term memory loss, too. I got his sister, who is a LVN at a mental hospital, to convince him to discontinue it and then he got sick with the flu, went to his Doctor, mentioned he wasn't sleeping well at night and the Dr told him to get back on the ambien!! (wasn't sleeping well because he was sleeping all day due to the flu). He had started feeling better within 2 days of stopping the ambien. Now he's back on it again and I'm back to square one. I don't know why a Dr. would tell his patient to get back on a drug that he has discontinued when the side effects are so dangerous. I will continue to try to convince him to stop taking it. I believe it is a dangerous drug.
Jackie

Ambien reviewDate: 1/27/2008It has been around 30 minutes since I swallowed a 6.25mg Ambien and I will try to write this review. I am really drowzy right now and I am ready to hit the sack, so I will try to make this short. I have been taking it about 3 weeks now, because I have had so much going on with work, school, etc... that I have been only sleeping 4 to 5 hours a night. So I wanted to try Ambien. It has been great for the most part, but I have notice some things different, one is my mood will fluctuate from a high to a low. Normally I am a pretty happy person. Second my dreams are very vivid and one other thing I notice is I use it almost everyday even when I do not need. But overall it has made a huge difference in my sleep and well being. Well time to sleep!
New User

Crazy dreams and some nervousnessDate: 1/28/2008I am 39 and have been taking ambien for 1 year. Today is day 4 without the ambien and for the first time in a year I woke up feeling alert and perky. The first 2 days I had crazy dreams and some nervousness. Last night I slept through the majority of the night. My withdraws were not bad and it was tolerable as I was still able to function normally. I did eat huge amounts of ice cream but I got through it and I feel really good. When I was first prescribed ambien, I was in a depression and could not sleep. I had never slept a full night without waking up for most of my life and had trouble falling asleep for years. The first time I took the ambien, I experienced the drunk feeling and made the mistake of hopping on the Internet and unknowingly completed contact forms for several colleges. I received phone calls for 2 weeks regarding my interest in the schools. Shock!

Over the course of the year I have been able to add several instances to that i.e. taken pictures of my husband sleeping with my camera phone. It's creepy to be scrolling through your pic's and see photo's that you don't remember taking. So my husband and I came up with the no electronics rule at bedtime and switched to reading. I felt myself become increasingly more dependent over the course of the year and truly relied on this drug to knock me out. I remember having anxiety about getting off the ambien and also about my doctor refilling the script.

One of the things I learned was to establish a night-time routine and regular bed-time and wake time. If I am interested in something on the computer or talking about things of importance, I tend to have complications sleeping. If I have a wind-down and quiet period of time reading something less stimulating, then I tend to become drousy and eventually fall asleep. Caffeine is totally off my diet so that's a huge help. Exercise is a must because it helps me sleep, even walking my dog has been a help. The reason I share this so that my experience can benefit others.
Kathleen

If you find this page useful share it with others. If you have used Ambien, use the form below to add your review of Ambien, feedback or suggestions that may help others. Please note that all addresses are held confidential.

Thanks for stopping by.
AskDocWeb

Your name:
Your email:
Add your product review below:

To send comments you must click on "Allow blocked Content" so that JavaScript can send them.